Sam Pillsbury is an American film director, producer, and winemaker.

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

-raised Sam Pillsbury emigrated to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

at the age of 14. At age 23 he began working for the government-owned

National Film Unit The National Film Unit (NFU) was a state-owned film-production organisation originally based in Miramar, New Zealand, Miramar, New Zealand. Founded in 1936 when the government took over a private film studio, Filmcraft, the NFU produced newsreels, ...

of New Zealand, joining a group of emerging filmmakers who were investigating new subjects and creative film making styles. Pillsbury directed seven films at the National Film Unit, including a multi-faceted study of artist

Ralph Hotere Hone Papita Raukura "Ralph" Hotere (11 August 1931 – 24 February 2013) was a New Zealand artist. He was born in Mitimiti, Northland and is widely regarded as one of New Zealand's most important artists. In 1994 he was awarded an honorary do ...

, and a satirical look at workplace relations (Men and Supermen). He was also part of the directing team on

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

chronicle

Games '74 Games '74 is a 1974 New Zealand–made documentary film of the 1974 British Commonwealth Games, held in Christchurch, New Zealand from 24 January to 2 February 1974. The full title was ''Games '74: Official Film of the Xth British Commonwealth ...

, and worked both on set and at the editing bench for

Paul Maunder Paul Allan Maunder (born 8 February 1945) is a New Zealand film director, playwright and cultural activist. He is best known for his Sons for the Return Home, 1979 film of the novel ''Sons for the Return Home'' by Albert Wendt, his 1983 play ' ...

Gone Up North for a While ''Gone Up North for a While'' is a 1972 New Zealand film directed by Paul Maunder. Synopsis Patricia Davis falls pregnant and goes against the advice of her family and unsympathetic welfare authorities by keeping her baby. This is followed by m ...

. Pillsbury went solo in 1975. Documentary Birth with R.D.Laing won awards on both sides of the Tasman, and controversy in England and the United States. The film featured controversial Scottish psychiatrist

R.D. Laing Ronald David Laing (7 October 1927 – 23 August 1989), usually cited as R. D. Laing, was a Scottish psychiatrist who wrote extensively on mental illnessin particular, the experience of psychosis. Laing's views on the causes and treatment of ...

critiquing Western medical handling of childbirth. Pillsbury also worked on four documentaries for TV slot Seven Days, which variously looked into life for a solo mother, an ex-convict, hospital patients, and young

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

in the city. More TV documentaries followed, then in 1978, Against the Lights, a short drama based on a

Witi Ihimaera Witi Tame Ihimaera-Smiler (; born 7 February 1944) is a New Zealand author. Raised in the small town of Waituhi, he decided to become a writer as a teenager after being convinced that Māori people were ignored or mischaracterised in literat ...

tale. Pillsbury's Round the Bays doco The Greatest Run on Earth won awards at festivals in Chicago and

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

. Pillsbury's feature film debut in 1981 was with The Scarecrow, based on the

gothic novel Gothic fiction, sometimes called Gothic horror in the 20th century, is a loose literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name is a reference to Gothic architecture of the European Middle Ages, which was characteristic of the settings of ea ...

by Ronald Hugh Morrieson. Presented through the eyes of two teenage boys, the film chronicles the arrival in a 50s town of a mysterious stranger (played by American movie legend

John Carradine John Carradine ( ; born Richmond Reed Carradine; February 5, 1906 – November 27, 1988) was an American actor, considered one of the greatest character actors in American cinema. He was a member of Cecil B. DeMille's stock company and later Jo ...

). In 1982 The Scarecrow became the first Kiwi film to win invitation to the prestigious

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

, in the non-competitive Director's Fortnight section. Teen star Jono Smith later reinvented himself as a cinematographer in England. Pillsbury then worked extensively on a screen adaptation of end of the world sci-fi novel The Quiet Earth, before handing the project to director

Geoff Murphy Geoffrey Peter Murphy (12 October 1938 – 3 December 2018) was a New Zealand filmmaker, producer, director, and screenwriter best known for his work during the renaissance of New Zealand cinema that began in the second half of the 1970s. His s ...

after deciding it needed fresh eyes (he later joked at being one of the only directors who had fired himself). Instead Pillsbury helmed 1880s immigrant tale Heart of the High Country for TV (based on a novel by Elizabeth Gowans), then segued into period road movie Starlight Hotel, which starred

Smash Palace ''Smash Palace'' is a New Zealand feature film that premiered at Cannes in May 1981 and was released theatrically in April 1982. The film chronicles a former race car driver (played by Bruno Lawrence) who inadvertently contributes to the end of ...

discovery

Greer Robson Greer Robson (born 16 October 1971) is a New Zealand television actress well known for her role in the television drama ''Shortland Street''. Biography Greer first came to prominence in the 1981 New Zealand film ''Smash Palace'' starring as Geo ...

. Since Starlight Hotel, Pillsbury has directed extensively, mainly on American tele-movies. He returned to Kiwi moviemaking in 2000 for Crooked Earth, the tale of a clash between two

: a militant drug-dealer, and former military man

Temuera Morrison Temuera Derek Morrison (born 26 December 1960) is a New Zealand actor and Singer who first gained recognition for his role as Dr. Hone Ropata on the soap opera ''Shortland Street''. He gained critical acclaim for his starring role as Jake "The ...

. Pillsbury's other features include Free Willy 3: The Rescue, 2008 road movie Endless Bummer and Where The Red Fern Grows. These days Pillsbury has a second career as a winemaker. In 2000 he and a business partner planted a Vineyard in Cochise County, Arizona, and in 2006 sold it to a group headed by

Maynard James Keenan Maynard James Keenan (born James Herbert Keenan; April 17, 1964) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and winemaker. He is best known as the singer and primary lyricist of the rock bands Tool, A Perfect Circle, and Pusci ...

. Pillsbury Wine Company was launched soon afterwards, with his new vineyard & tasting room across the road in Willcox, Arizona, and a Tasting Room in Old Town Cottonwood, Arizona. Pillsbury Wine has earned several national awards including Gold Medals in the Jefferson Cup, and several Double Gold Medals in the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. Pillsbury's wife is the daughter of sculptor Geny Dignac.

Selected filmography

*'' The Scarecrow'' (1982) *'' The Quiet Earth'' (1985, producer only) *''

Zandalee ''Zandalee'' is a 1991 American erotic thriller/romantic tragedy directed by Sam Pillsbury and starring Nicolas Cage, Judge Reinhold, Erika Anderson, Viveca Lindfors, Aaron Neville, Joe Pantoliano and Steve Buscemi. The screenplay by Mari Kornhau ...

'' (1991) *'' Into the Badlands'' (1991) (TV) *''

Knight Rider 2010 ''Knight Rider 2010'' is a 1994 American science fiction action television film directed by Sam Pillsbury and written by John Leekley, loosely based on the television series ''Knight Rider''. The film stars Richard Joseph Paul, Heidi Leick, Mic ...

'' (1994) (TV) *'' Eyes of Terror'' (1994) (TV) *'' Search for Grace'' (1994) (TV) *''

Shadows of Desire ''Shadows of Desire'' is a 1994 television film starring Nicollette Sheridan, Joe Lando, Adrian Pasdar, Richard Roundtree, Piper Laurie and Brandon Smith. It was directed by Sam Pillsbury and written by Joyce Eliason. The film score was compose ...

'' (1994) (TV) *'' Sins of Silence'' (1996) (TV) *'' A Mother's Instinct'' (1996) (TV) *'' Free Willy 3: The Rescue'' (1997) *''

Fifteen and Pregnant ''Fifteen and Pregnant'' is a 1998 American drama television film directed by Sam Pillsbury, written by Susan Cuscuna, and starring Kirsten Dunst, Park Overall, David Andrews, and Margot Demeter. Based on a true story, Dunst portrays a 15-year-o ...

'' (1998) (TV) *'' Morgan's Ferry'' (2001) *'' Crooked Earth'' (2001) *'' Where the Red Fern Grows'' (2003) *'' Raising Waylon'' (2004) (TV)

References

External links

*
NZ On Screen profile
*
Pillsbury Wine official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pillsbury, Sam Living people American emigrants to New Zealand American film producers American winemakers Artists from Waterbury, Connecticut Film directors from Connecticut Film producers from Connecticut New Zealand film directors New Zealand film producers Year of birth missing (living people)